Mount Laurel's Rancocas Woods designated as a redevelopment area

By George Woolston gwoolston@thebct.com@gcwoolston

Monday

May 13, 2019 at 8:00 AMMay 14, 2019 at 3:04 PM

The properties included in the redevelopment area are primarily located along Creek Road from Marne Highway to Knotty Oak Drive, along Marne Highway from Creek Road to Crystal Avenue and along Rancocas Boulevard from Creek Road to Lake Drive — mainly the Rancocas Woods Village Shops and its neighboring properties.

MOUNT LAUREL — Mount Laurel has taken another step in the effort to revitalize the township’s Rancocas Woods neighborhood.

The Township Council this month approved a resolution designating 30 parcels of land along Creek Road, Rancocas Boulevard and Marne Highway as an area in need of redevelopment, a measure that will make it easier for businesses and developers to invest in the shopping district there.

The properties included in the redevelopment area are primarily located along Creek Road from Marne Highway to Knotty Oak Drive, along Marne Highway from Creek Road to Crystal Avenue and along Rancocas Boulevard from Creek Road to Lake Drive — mainly the Rancocas Woods Village Shops and its neighboring properties.

The official designation comes after an investigation and recommendation made to the council by the Township Planning Board.

Now, township officials will work with Rancocas Woods stakeholders and the planning board to come up with an official redevelopment plan that will aim to not only help boost the existing businesses, but also help spur the development of underutilized or vacant lots, officials said.

When a governing body accepts the recommendation of the planning board to declare an area in need of rehabilitation, the planning board then prepares specifications and standards that would help spur growth. This may include changing permitted uses, changing setbacks and/or amending the township’s zoning map.

“But the standards would be limited to those properties in the redevelopment area,” Township Attorney George Morris said in an email. “Eventually the township could name a redeveloper to carry out the planning board’s vision.”

Some improvements have already found their way to the area.

Last September, the township held a revitalization meeting with the Rancocas Woods community to solicit ways to improve the area. And in November, it formed the Rancocas Woods Business Association, a group of business owners and township officials that meet once a month to discuss the ongoing effort.

Township Director of Economic and Community Development Bill Giegerich said that part of the reason he was hired was to help with that effort.

However, thanks to the investment of Matt Semola and his business partner Stephen Rush, the revitalization of Rancocas Woods Village Shops has already got a boost.

Semola and Rush, who are both a part of the Rancocas Woods Business Association, purchased a number of buildings in the village shops in 2017 — seven of which are located in the redevelopment area. Since, several small businesses have opened up — and have seen success, he said. Semola’s business, Creek Mercantile, has flourished, as has the Creek Cafe and Gourmet Market, which Semola opened up inside of the Rustic Door — a business not owned by Semola — located at 200 Creek Road.

Now, the Rustic Door and the Creek Cafe and Gourmet Market will move into Creek Mercantile, Semola said Friday. At its new location at Creek Mercantile, Semola said the Creek Cafe will expand to serve lunch and also have outdoor seating.

Another small business not run by Semola that began as a food truck and opened a location recently at 116 Creek Road, Ma and Pa’s Tex-Mex BBQ, is expected to expand into the bigger space at 200 Creek Road, said Semola.

Over the years, the shops lost customers to newer and larger stores and the convenience of online shopping. The property across Creek Road, a former shopping center, also sat primarily vacant for years, save for a few tenants, which also didn’t help bring traffic to the area.

Last year, a project was approved that will bring 37 apartments to that shopping center site.

Lori Poinsett remembers how run down the shops used to be when she moved to the Rancocas Woods neighborhood in 2007.

“The walkways were starting to decline, fences were falling apart, lights not where they should be,” Poinsett said. Now, she said the shops are heading in the right direction.

“I personally think it's awesome,” Poinsett said Friday of the ongoing efforts to revitalize the shopping district. “Generally speaking, the more businesses you have owning the land, the more land can be maintained … I think the better quality of shops we have here, the more pride we have in the area.”

Poinsett added that she would eventually like to see an anchor restaurant, or perhaps a small microbrewery, move into the area.

“Something that’s unique that can really pull people here,” Poinsett said, adding that eventually she would like the shops to become a Main Street-type district, a center of town where people can gather.

Semola said that he too hopes the designation will attract more businesses and development to the area.

“I do think its positive,” Semola said. “If it elevates the level of interest into [the area], that will help me.” He added that he hopes the designation will help make it easier for him help improve the landscaping of the properties he owns through potential grant opportunities, the last set of improvements to make until he feels the Rancocas Woods Village Shops can really attract more business.

In addition to trying to attract more business, the township also hopes to find more ways to highlight events.

“Ultimately, we want to attract new business to old businesses, and help businesses attract new customers,” Giegerich said.

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